Orioles conclude successful road trip with a wet 7-3 loss to Red Sox; Means returns for Tuesday start

BOSTON—For the second straight day, the start of the Orioles’ game against the Boston Red Sox was delayed by rain, and again, a sloppy game was the result.

Rain fell throughout the game, which was delayed 42 minutes at the start and for an additional 88 minutes in the bottom of the eighth inning. It took just nine minutes to complete the final four outs.

“It was definitely a tough way to start the game,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “We played in terrible conditions all day today, unfortunately. The best conditions were the last four outs. If they wanted to start the game in that type of environment, they got it and, unfortunately, we just didn’t play very well today.”

Grayson Rodriguez had his roughest start since he rejoined the Orioles after the All-Star break as the Red Sox beat the Orioles, 7-3, before an announced crowd of 31,295 at Fenway Park on Sunday.

The loss broke the Orioles’ seven-game winning streak, and with Tampa Bay’s 6-3 win over Seattle, reduced Baltimore’s lead in the American League East to three games. It was the final game of a nine-game road trip in which the Orioles went 7-2.

Rodriguez (5-4) allowed four runs, two unearned, on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings, his shortest outing since May 26^th, his final game of his first stint with the Orioles.

“I thought Grayson was fine. We didn’t help him out much,” Hyde said. “Some leadoff walks hurt him. Unbelievably tough conditions to pitch in with the wet mound and raining almost the entire time during his outing.”

The Orioles committed three errors, just the third time this season they’ve made three or more.

“They were some different conditions,” Rodriguez said. “Felt like my first time in Fenway would have been a little drier, but it’s something you have to deal with.”

After three consecutive games of scoring 10 or more runs, the Orioles (90-52) started fast, scoring three runs in the second against Boston starter rayan Bello (12-8) on four singles.

Aaron Hicks’ infield single scored Ryan O’Hearn. Adam Frazier hit a ball into the right-field corner that Adam Verdugo mishandled. Cedric Mullins and Hicks scored, and Frazier ended up at third.

Boston’s Rafael Devers and Justin Turner scored when Trevor Story’s grounder to third went under the glove of third baseman Ramón Urias in the bottom of the third, cutting the Orioles’ lead to 3-2.

Boston took a 4-3 lead in the fourth when Luis Urías doubled, Reese McGuire tripled, and Rafael Devers singled off Ramón Urias’ glove.

“Our defense has been one of the better things about this team. It’s just one of those days,” Rodriguez said. “Obviously field conditions were terrible. It makes it tough on them. A lot of wet baseballs. A lot of weird bounces. That’s something you should expect from them.”

Red Sox first baseman Trinton Casas hit a three-run home run against Cole Irvin in the sixth inning. O’Hearn committed an error on Devers’ grounder at first base that led to the homer.

Bello pitched five innings, allowing three runs on seven hits.

Josh Winckowski and Garrett Whitlock combined for three hitless innings and after play resumed, Nick Robertson retired the Orioles in the ninth.

Despite the horrible conditions, Hyde was happy with how the Orioles played on their nine-game road trip to Arizona, Los Angeles and Boston.

“We just went 7-2 on a trip,” he said. “We didn’t play very well the first one. Didn’t play very well [in] the last one. We played seven excellent games. Super happy and proud of what we did on this trip.”

Notes: John Means will start on Tuesday against the St. Louis Cardinals, Hyde announced after the game. It will be his first appearance since having Tommy John surgery in April 2022. He threw a bullpen session on Saturday and said he felt good afterward and was satisfied with his month-long minor league rehab stint. “Body feels good, pitches feel good, so I’m ready to go,” Means  said. He said he doesn’t care about his role. “I just want to win the World Series.”

The Orioles return to Camden Yards to play the Cardinals for three games beginning Monday night. Dean Kremer (12-5, 4.07) will face Dakota Hudson (6-1, 4.43) at 6:35 p.m. … Friday night’s game against Tampa Bay is a sellout. … Mullins stole second in the second inning. He’s 17-for-20 on steal attempts. … Total delays for this season are 20 hours, 25 minutes.

Minor league update: Third baseman Coby Mayo hit a three-run home run and second baseman Joseph Rosa drove in three runs as Triple-A Norfolk beat Jacksonville, 11-2.

First baseman Billy Cook hit a two-run home run, his 24^th, as Double-A Bowie lost to New Hampshire, 7-6.

High-A Aberdeen beat Greenville, 4-3, in its final game of the season. MLB Pipeline Top 100 catcher Samuel Basallo and rehabbing starter Seth Johnson will move up to Bowie for the final week of the Baysox season. News of the promotions were first reported by The Baltimore Banner and confirmed by an industry source.

Fredericksburg beat Single-A Delmarva, 3-1, in the final game of the Shorebirds’ season.